I'm in Yellow Maple Valley, and I have one equipment slot!

"Geng essence! It's Geng essence!"

"My God! It really is Geng Jing! It's such a huge piece!"

"This item is enough to elevate the quality of any magical artifact to a higher level!"

After a brief silence.

The hall erupted in a thunderous roar of exclamations and discussions!

Many Nascent Soul cultivators sat up abruptly, their eyes blazing with fervor.

Those Core Formation cultivators were also breathing heavily, even though they knew they couldn't afford it!

"Geng Essence, one of the hardest materials in the cultivation world, when added to magical artifacts, can greatly enhance their sharpness and toughness, making them indestructible! Starting price: 150,000 spirit stones, with each bid increment no less than 5,000!"

On the high platform, the female cultivator in purple made a loud announcement, her voice excited, stirring up the atmosphere.

"160,000!"

"170,000!"

"180,000!"

Bidding calls came one after another, instantly pushing the price up to 200,000 low-grade spirit stones.

Almost all of those participating in the competition were Nascent Soul cultivators, and most of them were sword cultivators or cultivators skilled in crafting offensive magic weapons.

The allure of Geng Jing to them was simply too great.

"Two hundred and one thousand!"

"Two hundred and twenty thousand!"

Prices are still soaring.

Just then, from the bamboo tube "Dongfu Tian" on Zhou Yuan's back, the excited voice of the Great Evolution Divine Lord rang directly in his mind:

"Geng Jing! Zhou boy, you must get it! This is one of the core materials for refining my 'Heavenly Puppet'! If it can be incorporated into the puppet's joints and shell, the puppet's strength, sharpness, and resistance to spiritual attacks will all increase several times over! Get it now!"

Zhou Yuan heard this.

His brows furrowed slightly.

He naturally wanted Geng Jing as well.

Moreover, they were determined to succeed.

However, his reason for wanting it was not entirely for the puppet of the Great Evolution God.

His own natal magic weapon, the Azure Bamboo Bee Cloud Sword, has only been partially refined into the Great Geng Sword Formation, with thirty-six flying swords yet to be infused with Geng essence.

If we can obtain this piece of Geng essence, we will be one step closer to achieving the complete version of the Great Geng Sword Formation.

While the materials needed by the Great Evolution Divine Lord are important, improving his immediate combat power is a higher priority for him at the moment.

After all, finding other materials would take time, but this piece of Geng essence was right in front of them.

However, he did not refute the Great Evolution Divine Lord.

Take a picture first, and then we'll figure out how to use it.

At worst, we can find other Geng essences in the future, or use other equivalent materials to meet the needs of the Great Evolution God.

At this moment, the price in the market had been pushed up to a high of 260,000 spirit stones. The bidder was an old man in a gray robe with a sharp aura and carrying an ancient sword box on his back. Judging from the faint sword intent emanating from his body, he was obviously a sword cultivator.

"Three hundred thousand!"

Without further hesitation, Zhou Yuan spoke directly. His voice wasn't loud, but it clearly resonated throughout the entire venue, carrying an undeniable aura.

"hiss--"

A collective gasp filled the hall.

Three hundred thousand spirit stones!

This is a price that many Nascent Soul cultivators would find difficult to pay.

Many Core Formation cultivators were stunned.

A piece of Geng Essence the size of a longan, though precious, still costs a staggering 300,000 spirit stones.

The gray-robed old man with the sword on his back changed his expression several times and glanced at Zhou Yuan.

In the end, they had no choice but to give up bidding.

Three hundred thousand yuan has exceeded his psychological bottom line and his ability to bear it.

"Three hundred thousand spirit stones! Any other fellow cultivators willing to bid?"

The purple-clad female cultivator excitedly surveyed the entire scene.

A moment of silence.

"Sold! Congratulations to this senior!"

The purple-clad female cultivator made the final decision with a single blow.

The gaze directed at Zhou Yuan was filled with awe.

Soon, a Core Formation deacon from the Tai Zhen Sect personally presented Zhou Yuan with a jade plate containing Geng Essence.

After Zhou Yuan checked and found nothing wrong, he took out a storage bag that had been prepared in advance, inside which were three thousand high-grade spirit stones neatly stacked.

Zhou Yuan carefully put away the Geng essence, feeling reassured.

This trip was definitely worthwhile.

The auction continued.

Perhaps the appearance of the Geng Jing exhausted everyone's enthusiasm, because although the subsequent auction items were also good, the intensity of the bidding clearly decreased.

Half an hour later, a spiritual herb sealed in a crystal jade box was presented.

The herb was dark gold in color, with long, narrow leaves and fine serrations along the edges, faintly forming tiger stripes. It also exuded a pure, domineering, and fierce medicinal aura through the crystal box.

"Two thousand years old, tiger's amber!"

The purple-clad female cultivator introduced, "This is one of the main ingredients of the ancient body-refining pill formula 'Tiger Soul Bone-Tempering Pill,' which has miraculous effects on tempering the body, enhancing qi and blood, and strengthening bones. Starting price: 30,000 spirit stones!"

"Tiger's Soul Grass?"

Zhou Yuan's eyes lit up.

This Tiger Soul Grass is old enough and has a powerful medicinal effect, making it perfect for him to use to refine some pills that can help temper his body. It will be of great help when he cultivates body tempering techniques in the future.

Although this item is rare, it is only the main ingredient in body-refining pills, and its target audience is relatively narrow.

In the end, Zhou Yuan successfully bid for it for 58,000 low-grade spirit stones.

Seeing Zhou Yuan make a series of moves.

And they were all large-scale projects.

The Marquis of Nanlong and Lu Weiying, sitting next to him, couldn't help but reveal a hint of envy in their eyes.

Although they were also in the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm and had considerable wealth, Zhou Yuan's ability to spend hundreds of thousands or even tens of thousands of spirit stones without batting an eye still left them speechless.

The Marquis of Nanlong and Lu Weiying, sitting next to him, couldn't help but reveal a hint of envy in their eyes.

Although they were also in the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm and had considerable wealth, Zhou Yuan's ability to spend hundreds of thousands or even tens of thousands of spirit stones without batting an eye still left them speechless.

This overseas returnee is far too wealthy!

"Fellow Daoist Zhou is truly wealthy, making us all feel ashamed."

Lu Weiying said, half jokingly and half with emotion.

"Fellow Daoist Lu is joking. My meager resources are nothing more than what I've accumulated over many years of wandering overseas. How can they compare to Fellow Daoist Lu's backing by a major sect and abundant resources?"

Zhou Yuan waved his hand modestly.

The auction lasted for nearly an hour before finally coming to a close. Zhou Yuan made no further bids besides for the Geng Essence and Tiger Soul Grass.

Back in the pavilion of Qingxin Garden, Zhou Yuan activated the protective barrier.

"Hmph! What kind of righteous trade fair is this! Apart from that thumb-sized piece of Geng Essence, there's hardly anything worth looking at! And I didn't see a single material on my list!"

The Great Evolution God's dissatisfied voice immediately came from the bamboo tube, filled with deep disappointment:

"These younger generations in Tiannan are getting more and more useless; they can't even organize a decent trade fair!"

"My Lord, please calm down."

Zhou Yuan took the bamboo tube down and placed it on the table. He poured himself a cup of tea and said slowly, "If rare materials were so easy to obtain, they wouldn't be considered rare."

"It was a pleasant surprise to encounter Geng Jing at this trade fair. As for the other materials, we need to plan carefully and search for them slowly."

"That's true, but I..."

The Great Evolution God sighed; he knew he couldn't rush things.

"My Lord, please look at this; it may bring you some comfort."

As Zhou Yuan spoke, he took out the Heavenly Fire Divine Chain and placed it on the table.

The silver chains binding the corpse demon lay there quietly, their entire bodies shimmering with a cool, silvery light, appearing to be ordinary metal.

"This metal...it's so beautiful..."

The voice of the Great Evolution God Lord suddenly rose, filled with shock and ecstasy.

Clearly, with his discerning eye, he could tell at a glance that the silver chain was extraordinary.

This material is incredibly hard and comes in large quantities, unlike the piece of Gengjing at the trade fair, which was only the size of a longan and enough to support the main body of the puppet.

Puppets made from this hard material are virtually impossible to destroy in an instant by any attack in the human or immortal cultivation world.

The sturdiness of the puppet was now guaranteed.

"I obtained it by chance." Zhou Yuan smiled slightly. "I'm glad the Divine Lord finds it useful."

"It works! It works so well! Hahaha!"

The Great Evolution God Lord burst into laughter, all his previous gloom vanishing.

"Young Zhou, you truly have great fortune! This deity is increasingly convinced that you can help me gather all the materials needed to craft the puppet!"

"I hope so."

Zhou Yuan put away the Heavenly Fire Divine Chains, then suddenly changed the subject, asking, "Divine Lord, have you studied the Soul Searching Technique?"

"Soul search?"

The Great Evolution Divine Lord's voice carried a hint of arrogance, "This minor skill is naturally mastered by me."

"As long as the other party cannot resist, no matter what kind of secret techniques or treasures they possess to protect their soul, I have a way to extract their memories! Why are you suddenly asking about this?"

"Do you want to perform a soul search on someone?"

"Exactly."

A cold glint flashed in Zhou Yuan's eyes.

"I captured a Nascent Soul cultivator in my early years, and the cultivation technique he practiced was somewhat useful to me."

"However, this person has cultivated a certain technique that makes soul searching difficult; forcibly searching their soul might cause them to self-destruct!"

"I wonder if the Divine Lord is confident?"

"Oh? A secret technique for protecting the spirit? That's interesting."

The Great Evolution God Lord became interested.

"Release that Nascent Soul cultivator so I can see it. As long as it's not a Deity Transformation cultivator, I'm ninety percent certain!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yuan no longer hesitated.

He reached into his robes and pulled out a jade bottle.

He removed the seal from the bottle.

"Whoosh!"

A golden light shot out from the bottle's mouth, instantly expanding into a miniature Nascent Soul about a foot tall, its entire body dimmed with golden light, its face ferocious, and filled with resentment—it was none other than Barbarian Beard!

However, the nascent soul of the barbarian was much weaker than before.

The light flickered intermittently, clearly indicating that it had been greatly depleted by the long period of sealing and previous torment.

"Zhou Yuan! You shameless, despicable scoundrel! If you have the guts, give me a quick death!"

"You want to get the Heaven-Supporting Demonic Technique from Grandpa? Dream on! Even if my soul is scattered, I won't let you, you beast, succeed!"

Once the nascent soul of the barbarian was freed from the bottle, despite its weakness, its ferocity remained undiminished. It glared at Zhou Yuan and cursed him in a sharp, piercing voice.